Chicago’s Best Veggie Eats

Believe it or not, Chicago has a plethora of vegetarian, vegan and veggie-friendly restaurants. If you’re a Chicagoan, or a frequent visitor you’ll find some classics on this list, but you might find a few places you didn’t know about. I’m writing this with the visitor in mind, though, so I might skip a few places that have a few (lame) veg options but aren’t really worth wasting your precious time at. I’m separating this list into:

Cheap Eats – All veggie and/or vegan. Entrees average <$10, ideal for travelers on a budget or people staying a few days who don’t want to blow the bank on food.

Don’t Miss – All veggie and/or vegan. These joints tend to be $10+ for the average entree but are well-worth it. I even got married in one of them!

Fantastic Options – Omnivore businesses with better-than-average options for the vegetarian and/or vegan. You don’t win friends with salad, and you won’t get stuck eating salad at any of these places.

If you’re a local and you think I missed something great, feel free to say so in the comments. Let’s get started!

Cheap Eats

Quesadilla La Reyna del Sur – Super authentic vegan and vegetarian Mexican food for cheap. Seriously. If you’re a fake meat fan, this is your joint – fake goat, sheep, even pork skin – get it with your choice or dairy or vegan cheese in a quesadilla, huarache, taco or torta. Don’t worry, they also have soy-based chicken, beef, and other “normal” fake meats too. Not a fake meat fan? Try the mushroom, corn truffle or cactus. I usually go for the Veggie Cubana, which is soy-based mexican sausage with soy bacon and soy-based chicken for $5.75! They also do a ton of fresh juices and just started offering vegan desserts to. View the menu.

“Chicken” Run Ranch Burger Photo by Jessica R.

Native Foods - This is a chain, so check here to see if there’s one near you. We have three locations in Chicago, including one right next to the tattoo shop where my ex-boyfriend works, otherwise known as “the one I don’t go to.” This place is 100% vegan, and the menu is mostly American-style sandwiches and salads, with a healthy vegan twist. They make their own soy meats and cashew-based cheese and the vegan ranch on the Chicken Run Ranch Burger is nothing short of amazing. View the menu.

Vegetarian Express - With it’s somewhat odd mix of Mexican and “other” dishes (panini, Thai-inspired smoothies, etc) Veg Express isn’t necessarily my favorite, but it’s dirt ass cheap and if you’re in Lakeview and killing time before you head to Chicago Diner or another less-cheap place, it’s a good choice. View the menu.

Urban Vegan – It’s pretty easy to veganize Thai food (just ask for no egg, no fish sauce, etc.) But why bother when there’s Urban Vegan? Most entrees squeeze in just under $10, and although there are combos available, I recommend sharing an app and getting your own entree. The rice and salad included in the combos aren’t really worth the extra few bucks you could spend on an app or dessert instead. View the menu.

Ground Control - Whereas most Chicago vegan/veggie joints have becoming institutions, Ground Control reminds me more of the quirky vegan restaurants in the Bay Area. The menu changes up pretty often, and they keep confusing hours – two irregularities that hungry Chicagoans normally don’t stand for – but we’re so happy to have an alternative to the long lines at both Chicago Diner locations we’re totally cool with it.

Kitchen 17 - If you don’t feel like waiting for a table at Chicago Diner’s Lakeview location, or you’re just craving a delicious vegan dessert, this is the place. I recommend any of the seitan-based sandwiches. I will say that I’ve purchased two sour slices of cheesecake here (it’s coconut-based) so if it smells weird, ask for something different.

Don’t Miss

Chicago Diner – This is an absolute classic. Since 1983 The Diner has been serving up meat-free comfort foods in the heart of Boystown. I am obsessed with the Country Fried Steak, whereas my husband always goes for the Radical Reuben. You get a ton of food for your money, but don’t stuff yourself with dinner because you’re going to want to get a vegan shake at the end of the meal. Take my advice, and get the Cookie Dough Peanut Butter. Oh, and they also have beer, booze and a gluten-free menu. Oh, and did I mention that I got married there? Because I did. View the menu. (Chicago Diner now has two locations – check the site to find them both.)

Chicken-style Legs from Karyn’s

Karyn’s on Green – The website refers to Karyn’s businesses as a “vegan mini empire” and I’m inclined to agree. She also has Karyn’s Raw, Karyn’s Cooked, Karyn’s Fresh Corner, and a flipping spa! I’ve eaten my way around the “empire” and On Green is my favorite. The menu is contemporary American broken down into small and large plates. My husband and I always order a lot and share, but the Chicken Legs are my hands-down favorite. It’s a beautiful restaurant, so it’s perfect for date night – but they’ve never turned their noses up at Tony and me when we roll in wearing hardcore shirts and gym shoes. View the menu.

MANA Food Bar – I can’t think of a better endorsement for this place than to say I brought CM Punk there recently and he went back for lunch the very next day. It’s a warm and cozy little place with a selection of small plates that are perfect for sharing. I always get the Salad Sampler, and the Pickled always gets one of those three spots. Never before in my life have I said the words, “Oh my god this salad is so fucking good!” Another go-to is the Mana Slider. I’m not even going to explain it, you just need to shut up and eat like, three of them. Make sure you tell the server if you’re vegan as many items do contain dairy. View the menu.

Blind Faith Cafe – This was one of the first vegan/veggie restaurants I ever went to back in the Krishna-core days. After a Shelter show you could pretty much count on Soul Veg (not on my list because I’m not a big fan) and Chicago Diner would be packed so those in-the-know would pile into cars and head out of the city to nearby Evanston for some Blind Faith yums. It was pricer than I could really afford back then, but nowadays it’s a good date spot and a nice place to bring my mom, who is also a veg head. The menu changes pretty often, but I always go for something with their delicious housemade seitan and dear god almighty, save room for dessert. Blind Faith is home to my favorite vegan bakery on planet Earth. If you eat in the sit-down restaurant, skip the plated dessert menu and order something from the bakery instead – like the Peanut Butter Chocolate Cake – dang. View the menu.

Fantastic Options

I just want to say, this is my favorite section. As much as I love all of Chicago’s exclusively vegetarian restaurants, I love finding hidden treasure even more. These are places that you can go with your omnivore friends (and remind them that they are not carnivores, that really annoys me,) or just go for the veggie stuff because it’s that awesome.

Artwork by Betty Turbo

Budacki’s Drive In – I wish I had a video of the day my husband and I discovered this place that I could share with you. We were driving by when Tony thought he saw “veggie dogs” painted on one of the windows of this classic Chicago hot dog stand. He whipped the car around in a sweet Chicago-style U-turn and pulled into the parking lot. There it was, in bold painted letters, “We have veggie dogs.” When we made our way back for lunch the next day we were greeted with multiple $5 “Tree Hugger’s Specials.” Your choice of veggie dog with all the Chicago fixins, veggie burger or grilled cheese with fries and a pop for $5. Sure, you could wait in line all day long for a Morning Star veggie dog from Hot Doug’s, but why would you when you can sit at a picnic table, eating an oniony veggie dog and people watching on Damen Ave?

Estrella Negra – While it isn’t necessarily tough to find veggie options at most Mexican restaurants, it is hard to find ones that make you, if you’ll excuse the expression, totally cream your jeans. Estrella Negra is a healthy, veg-friendly approach to Mexican food. There’s no shortage of tacos and tamales, but it’s light on the dairy, grease and salt, so the ingredients really shine through. The cool Día de Muertos interior made me a happy girl, and the punk rock and heavy metal sound track made Tony a happy dude. Best of all, though, was the Taffy Apple Empanadas with Vanilla Bean Ice Cream I had for dessert. View the menu.

Artwork by Caged Tomato

Nhu Lan Bakery – Bánh mì oh my! (Sorry, I had to.) Bánh mì is the Vietnamese term for bread, and in the case of Nhu Lan Bakery, it’s a crusty French loaf sliced, and stuffed with crunchy veggies and amazing, pressed tofu. I’m obsessed with the lemongrass tofu, although the ginger tofu is also amazing. I did try the veggie pate and ham and wasn’t a fan, but god damn it, I’m just glad it exists! Did I mention that these gigantor sammies are a mere $3.50 each? Yeah, because that’s ridiculous.

Whole Foods City – OK, that’s our made up name for Whole Foods Lincoln Park, but it’s one of the biggest WF in the country so the name is well-deserved. When you’re done wandering the isles marveling at the array of groceries you never knew existed, make your way over to the food court. Here you’ll find an organic diner with a great housemade veggie burger and veggie dogs, a taco stand with several fresh, tasty vegan and veggie options, and vegan pizza slices just to name a few. We spend a lot of Saturday afternoons at Whole Foods City in the summer, because you can take your food outside and look out at the Chicago River while you dine.

Red Door Chicago – Every Tuesday you can enjoy a $29 prix fixe vegan menu. Red Door calls it #TradeOffTuesday. I personally enjoy watching the chefs walk out to the backyard garden and pick ingredients for my meal – for real! It’s as fresh as it gets and truly delicious.

Honerable Mentions

Here are a few other places where you can find decent veggie and vegan options. They aren’t here because they aren’t good, they just aren’t my personal favorites. Most of these have Tony to thank for appearing on this post.

Handlebar – tons of veggie and vegan options, tons of beer and tons of rolled-up jeans and ironic mustaches.